Events & Meetings
Historic Walking Tour
Tom Paterson to Lead Two "Black Track" tours in 2010
Tom Paterson has again generously agreed to lead two of his very popular "Black Track" tours of Morden Colliery and South Wellington coal mining sites and rail lines in 2010. Tom is a well-known Vancouver Island historian, newspaper columnist and raconteur, as many of you know.
His tours continue to be in great demand. In fact, because of recent media response and publicity, there are now so many people on the waiting list for his Spring 2010 tour that we suggest people ask to have their names added to the Fall 2010 waiting list instead. Please e-mail cchristo@shaw.ca or phone 250-714-0377 if you would like to do so.
Ticket prices remain $30.00 for one individual, $25.00 each for two or more in a party. Those who have signed up as interested for Tom's May 2010 tour will be contacted by e-mail or phone as soon as he has confirmed the tour date. Priority for one of the twenty spaces is on a "first come, first serve " basis. Those who confirm first and send in their cheque(s) within one week, will have first priority.
Proceeds of ticket sales will again go to support Friends of the Morden Mine Society in their endeavour to bring about the preservation of Morden Colliery. Its splendid but rapidly deteriorating 1913 headframe and tipple, innovative at the time in their use of reinforced concrete, are the only such remaining above-ground structures on Vancouver Island, or in North America we believe. Morden Colliery Historic Provincial Park has recently been named as an Historic Place by Parks Canada and will be on the Canadian Register of Historic Places. Tom, as usual, will be donating his time and his fund of historical coal mining stories.
Tours typically assemble at 10:00 a.m. at Morden Colliery Historic Provincial Park in front of the headframe. Each participant is asked to bring water or juice, a packed lunch/snacks sufficient to sustain them for the length of the tour, typically ranging up to five hours. Hats, sunscreen, sturdy shoes, and clothing to protect from possible brambles or wayward branches are also recommended. Transportation will be pooled to drive participants to various mine sites, but participants are asked to provide their own to and from the park. Participants are reminded that to ensure the safety and enjoyment of all tour members, they should refrain from wandering off by themselves or engaging in conversations that impede the ability of others to hear the commentary.
Note: "Black Track" refers to those South Wellington area railway lines informally used by miners and residents as a "public thoroughfare" or walking track. Coal dust so thickly coated the lines that they became known locally as the "Black Track."
Click here to view descriptions of two previous tours.
Report on October 15, 2009 Annual General Meeting, Cedar Heritage Centre
More than forty people attended Friends of Morden Mine 2009 Annual General Meeting on October 15th. FOMM was very pleased to have Lynne Bowen, well-known Vancouver Island author-historian, as guest speaker. Lynne gave a preview of her book, to be published in the spring of 2011, noting among many other findings some of the constraints that workers from Italy who migrated to Vancouver Island and to other areas of B.C. encountered. For more information about Lynne’s book and her many other activities, see www.lynnebowen.ca.
David Gogo, FOMM’s 2008 to 2009 president, was confirmed once again as president for 2009 to 2010. He referred to his absences from meetings because of his European and other musical commitments. However, he emphasized that more wide-spread recognition of the historical value and preservation of Morden Colliery’s unique headframe and tipple continued to be a major priority on his agenda. He predicted once again that with adequate financial support Morden could become an icon for tourism as well as an educational centre for local residents and their families as well as for those from other Vancouver Island coal mining communities
John Hofman, FOMM’s vice-president, summarized FOMM’s activities in 2009, citing particularly the two $4,000 grants received from the Regional District of Nanaimo and the City of Nanaimo, in 2009. These grants, combined with 2008 matching grants from BC Parks and FOMM, has enabled commissioning of a site survey of Morden Colliery Historic Provincial Park as well as of the western portion of Morden Colliery Regional Trail. John announced that the contract for this work had been given to Gemella Design. FOMM will oversee administration of the site survey. Input from the public about desirable enhancements will be one of the first priorities.
John outlined other activities of FOMM including sponsorship of Tom Paterson's two "Black Track" tours; its hosting of special tours of Morden for groups such as the university students from Holland's Groningen University and Vancouver Island University; its collaboration with South Wellington Community Association (SWACA) and South Wellington Parents Advisory Committee (PAC) to sponsor and build a joint float for the Empire Days parade, the FOMM booth at the Miners’ Heritage Picnic in June, the table at Coal Town Musical Festival in late August, and its attempts at involving other historical societies by subscribing to memberships in their organizations and inviting them to attend major events.
He mentioned the role that FOMM’s newsletter and website attempted to play in generating interest in preservation of Morden Colliery’s rapidly deteriorating structures. He also emphasized that articles or information from members or others relating to Morden Colliery’s history or family involvement, as well as present views on enhancement of the site survey area, would be much appreciated.
Ingrid Greenwell, Treasurer, in her financial statement as of June 30, 2009, noted that FOMM had a bank balance of $22,431.52. $16,000 of this will go to Gemella Designs for the site survey. As well there will be other expenses for FOMM related to public participation costs of the site survey not covered in that contract.
Three new directors were elected to FOMM’s Board of Directors: Louise Shuker, Mike Gogo, and Mark Drysdale. See their brief bios on www.mordenmine.com under “Home/Constitution/Directors.” As well, Frank Garnish, pro tem director since May 2009, was voted in as a 2009/2010 director.
For a summary of the 2008 AGM activate this link.
Directors' Meetings
2010 directors’ meetings will be held on the first Wednesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. atthe Country Grocer store, 82 Twelfth Street, Southgate Shopping Centre (also known as South Parkway Plaza) Nanaimo, B.C. Both members and non-members are welcome. If there are any changes to scheduled meetings, notice will be posted on our website.
To access from the south on #1, the Island Highway, drive a few hundred feet beyond the junction of #19, Nanaimo Parkway, and Cedar Road, turn left on Tenth Street, left again on Lawlor Road, left once again into Country Grocer's parking lot. From the north, again driving on #1, look for Tenth Street turnoff on your right, the road between the Food Country mall on the north and Buckerfields and associated plaza stores on the left.
The meeting room is on the second floor. The stairs leading to the second floor are immediately to the right of the Country Grocer coffee shop, if one enters from that entrance. The door is unmarked. Turn right after going up the stairs and the meeting room is a couple of feet away.
To enlarge, please click
Fundraising and Other Events
After Friends of Morden Mine became a society in 2003, they hosted several Miners' Picnics at the Morden site. In 2006, they held two very successful fundraising events: a Beer and Burger and Silent Auction Night at the historic Wheatsheaf Inn in Cedar, as well as a benefit concert by award-winning blues musician David Gogo.
David's great grandfather drowned, along with 18 other miners, when a South Wellington local coal mine suddenly flooded in 1915. He performed the song he wrote to commemorate that terrible tragedy, "She's Breakin' Through," at his 2006 benefit for Morden. It was nominated for a Juno award in 2007 and is on David Gogo's cd "Acoustic."
In 2008, Friends of Morden Mine began seeking monies to fund a site plan to outline goals and objectives for preservation of Morden’s historic mining structures as well as physical development of its surrounding areas, including portions of the western half of RDN’s Morden Colliery Regional Trail. B.C. Parks granted $4,000 towards preparation of this site plan, and FOMM matched this with $4,000 available from their previous fundraising initiatives.
In 2009, the Regional District of Nanaimo and City of Nanaimo each gave matching monies of $4,000 towards preparation of the site plan. FOMM will be in charge of its administration.
Tom Paterson's annual "Black Track" tours have been a source of fundraising monies for FOMM for several years. For the last two years Tom has generously donated his time, energy, and skills to semi-annual "Black Track" tours. Tom's tours not only provide much publicity for Morden, its remediation problems, and its historic and cultural significance, but also publicize the historic significance of other coal mining sites in the South Wellington area.
FOMM also gratefully acknowledges the monetary and "in kind" donations from individuals and businesses that it continues to receive. These are much appreciated and help to provide additional funds to promote the preservation of Morden Colliery's structures.
Friends of Morden Mine is a registered charity and tax receipts are issued for donations. For more information please e-mail info@mordenmine.com.